I love how
God has woven the finished works of Jesus throughout scripture. During my study
time for our women’s bible study, God opened Psalm 46 to me in a whole new way
and I would like to share.
Psalm 46:1-3
NASB
God is our refuge and
strength; a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though
the earth should change and though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; though its waters
roar and foam, though the mountains quake at its swelling pride. Selah
This Psalm
opens with how God is our refuge, our shelter and He is our help. By knowing
this we don’t have to worry when things seem to get crazy in the world. Look
closely at the verses above, when you see things like the earth changing and
mountains slipping into the sea, you may wonder how this pertains to today.
Think about all the talk today about global warming. Here is a little
information that I found on global warming:
·
Average temps have climbed 2 degrees Fahrenheit around
the world since the late 19th century.
·
The arctic is feeling the effect the most.
Average temps in Alaska, western Canada, and eastern Russia have risen at twice
the global average.
·
Most of the warming occurred in the past 35 years,
with 16 of the 17 warmest years on record occurring since 2001. Not only was
2016 the warmest year on record, but eight of the 12 months were the warmest on
record for those respective months.
·
Arctic ice is rapidly disappearing, and the
region may have its first completely ice-free summer by 2040.
·
The Montana Glacier National Park has only 27
glaciers left from the 150 that were there in the year 1910.
·
Sea level rise is caused primarily by two
factors related to global warming; the added water from melting ice sheets and
glaciers and the expansions of sea water as it warms.
Information from National Geographic News Online
I don’t know
if you have ever seen a video of ice breaking off into the sea, but it really
looks like a mountain slipping into the heart of the sea. When you look at the
information gathered about global warming and then look at the scripture above,
you can see a modern day take on what God’s word said.
Psalm 46:4-7
There is a river whose streams make glad
the city of God, the holy dwelling places of the Most High. God is in the
midst of her, she will not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns.
This
reference to the city of God is the kingdom of God. Jesus talked about how the
kingdom of God was at hand while He walked the earth. The kingdom of God is what
Jesus brought us. This is also clarified at the end of this verse when He says
the holy dwelling places of the Most High. Where is that? Inside of us. Notice
it says places, plural!!! Then look at the next line, God is in the midst of
her. Who is her? The city of God, the holy dwelling places, this would be the
Holy Spirit who has come to dwell in all who believe in Jesus. The river in this verse is running to us, so
what is the river? Let’s see what the bible says about the river flowing from
the temple:
Ezekiel 47:1-12
By the river on its bank, on one side and on
the other, will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither,
and their fruit will not fail. They will bear every month because their water
flows from the
sanctuary, and their fruit will be for food and their leaves for healing.
I just have
verse 12 listed here but I would advise you to read verses 1-12 because they
describe what God showed Ezekiel. The river flowed from the temple to the sea
and its waters healed and prospered everything it touched. The sea was made
fresh and fish thrived, the trees thrived, and the leaves of the trees were for
healing. The river is the finished works
of Jesus flowing from God to each and every one of us continuously. There is a
constant flow of grace from God to us and we can receive that flow on a
continuous basis or we can reject it. The supply is there already, we don’t
have to beg God for it. All we have to do is believe that it is there and let
the supply flow into us and then live from it because in Psalm 46:4 we are told
that the river is flowing to the dwelling places of the Most High and that is
us.
Psalm
46:8-11 Come, behold the works of the Lord…
These verses
are reminding Israel all the battles that God fought for them. He is bringing
them to a place of trust.
How has God
helped you in the past? I like to journal (go figure) and every once in a
while, I will look back at the different things that God has done for me
because remembering these things will strengthen your faith.
Psalm
46:10-11
Be still and know that I am God:
I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! The Lord of hosts is
with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
This is God
reassuring us that He is here, and He will be exalted. How will He be exalted?
Through us, that’s the only way that people can see how awesome our God is. When
we trust Him, people will see the result of that trust in our lives.
This
reinforces my reliance on Grace!
